"I'm very surprised. I expected we'd see healthy turnout, robust turnout. But this is beyond any expectations I had," said Dr. Chris Cooper, a Political Science Professor at Western Carolina University.
Data analyzed by Cooper found early voting through Thursday was about 24% higher than at the same point of the 2022 midterm primaries, and even higher than the 2024 presidential primaries. For reference, the 2022 midterm primaries saw the highest turnout for a midterm primary in the state in 20 years.
"I felt the same kind of energy in the presidential election in 2024," said Kevan Cooper, who cast his ballot at the Herbert C. Young Community Center in Cary.
Through Thursday, nearly 7,400 people had cast ballots at that location, making it the busiest in the state. Early voting totals topped 500,000 through Thursday, with Wake County alone expected to top 50,000 votes by the end of Friday.
The county is also seeing a large surge, with Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday of this week the three highest early voting days of the cycle.
"I think we're going to end up with incredibly high voter turnout in this midterm primary. People are fired up," said Cooper.
According to the State Auditor's Office, there is a 6% increase in the number of early voting sites open compared to the 2022 primary election. Wake is one of 17 counties with a higher number of early voting locations this cycle.
Voters shared a variety of topics motivating them to the polls.
"I think it's issues that everybody is concerned about. It's health care, it's the economy, it's the environment," said Cooper.
"I want to vote for people who are going to support public education and putting tax dollars into our public schools. That's one of my top issues. (I) also (want) people that are going to keep Wake a strong place and protect us from some of the federal overreach," said Amy Womble, who also voted early.
As North Carolina has drawn a larger focus on the national scale, Cooper explained that the state's voters have followed suit.
"North Carolina gets an incredible amount of national attention because it is a rare purple state in this country, and voters are picking up on that trend. They are showing up more. They're becoming more engaged in the process. I mean, the State Senate District 26 we keep talking about it, it was in The New York Times. When was the last time a state Senate District in North Carolina ended up in The New York Times? Rarely, if ever," said Cooper, referring to the Republican primary between Senate President Phil Berger and Rockingham County Sheriff Sam Page.
According to analysis by Cooper, turnout from registered Democrats is up 26%, turnout from registered Republicans is up 8%, and turnout from unaffiliated voters is up 40%.
"In State Senate District 26, the Berger-Page primary that everybody is watching, unaffiliated voters are going to the Republican primary. That's the one that matters, right? In North Carolina's Fourth Congressional District, guess where they're going? The Democratic primary, because that's where things matter," said Cooper.
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Both Cooper and Womble discussed the importance of paying attention to local races.
"Things start at the ground level that affect us here in Wake County, and we've got a great place to live, and we want to keep it that way. So we want to keep forward-thinking people in office," said Womble.
"I've found it more prudent for me to get involved in local elections than I've ever before," added Cooper.
Early voting runs through 3:00 p.m. Saturday. Election Day is Tuesday, March 3.
"Your vote matters. I think some people want you to think it doesn't, but that's what makes our democracy," said Womble.
ABC11 will be running a Your Voice, Your Vote Primary Special on Sunday, which will air at 11:30 a.m. and 10:30 p.m. The special can be viewed wherever you stream Eyewitness News.